As districts work to meet increasing student needs and maintain high-quality educational programs, the purchasing power of state and local dollars has eroded under the cumulative effects of persistent inflation. To understand how rising costs are impacting students and teachers in the classroom, we conducted interviews with leaders across 18 school districts.
The Education Cost Sharing (ECS) formula is used by the State of Connecticut to distribute approximately $2.36 billion annually in state education funding. This infographic breaks down the ECS formula and provides an easy-to-understand look at how it is used to provide state funding to Connecticut's local and regional public school districts.
As part of the state budget for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the Connecticut General Assembly made several changes to the ECS formula, including expanding the types of districts eligible for the formula's Regional District Bonus, and increasing the amount of funding per student provided by the Bonus. This document provides an overview of these changes to the Regional District Bonus, and answers some of the most common questions about this component of the ECS formula.
In an effort to provide valuable background information about the components of an effective school finance system, and offer options for policymakers to consider, the Connecticut School Finance Project created a comprehensive Funding Formula Guidebook. The Funding Formula Guidebook examines how Connecticut can achieve fair funding for its more than 540,000 students and details a framework for an equitable school finance system.